Libya needs two weeks to publish elections results

Election officials work in the operations rooms of the High National Elections Commission after elections yesterday in Tripoli, June 26, 2014. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny

TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Libya will need around two weeks to count the votes of last week’s parliamentary election and publish final results, the elections commission said on Saturday.

On Wednesday, the North African state elected a new assembly in a vote marred by a low turnout and violence, opening a new chapter in Libya’s bumpy transition toward democracy since the 2011 fall of Muammar Gaddafi to an armed uprising.

“We are expecting to announce the final results in mid-Ramadan,” said Emad Sayeh, head of the High National Election Commission. He was referring to the holy Muslim fasting month that starts on Sunday.

The commission published partial results from some cities but Sayeh said more time was needed to count votes and produce accurate results.

Fewer than half of eligible Libyans voted, a paltry turnout reflecting disillusion with the chaos prevailing since Gaddafi’s overthrow.

The oil producer is in chaos as the government and outgoing parliament have failed to produce security and curb militias who helped oust Gaddafi but now defy state authority.